Manually Cleaning Print Cartridges

If the printer is used in a dusty environment, a small amount of debris may accumulate inside the case. This debris can include dust, hair, carpet, or clothing fibers. When it gets on the print cartridges and cradle, it can cause ink streaks and smudges on printed pages. Ink streaking is easily corrected by manually cleaning the cartridges and cradle.

Gathering Cleaning Supplies

You will need the following items to clean the print cartridges and cradle:

Be careful not to get ink on your hands or clothing as you clean.

Preparing to Clean

Remove the print cartridges from the printer before cleaning.

  1. Press the Power button to turn on the printer; raise the top cover.

The print cartridges move to the center of the printer.

  1. Disconnect the power cord from the back of the printer.
  2. Remove the print cartridges and place them on a piece of paper with the ink nozzle plate facing up.

See the illustration in "Cleaning the Print Cartridges and Print Cartridge Cradle" for the location of the ink nozzle plate.

Do not leave the cartridges outside the printer for more than 30 minutes.

Caution! Do not touch the print cartridge ink nozzles or copper contacts. Do not remove the copper strips.

Cleaning the Print Cartridges and Print Cartridge Cradle

  1. Dip the end of a clean cotton swab into the distilled water and remove any excess water.
  2. Clean the face and edges of the first print cartridge with the swab, as shown in the following illustration.

Do Not wipe the nozzle plate.

1. Nozzle plate 2. Clean these areas

  1. Inspect the face and edges of the print cartridge for fibers.

Repeat steps 1 and 2 above if fibers are still present.

  1. Repeat the cleaning process for the other print cartridge.
  2. Wipe the underside of the print cartridge cradle walls using clean, moistened cotton swabs.

Repeat this process until no ink residue appears on a clean swab.

1. Print cartridge cradle 2. Cradle wall

  1. Reinsert the print cartridges and close the printer's top cover.
  2. Reconnect the power cord to the back of the printer.
  3. Print a test page from the HP Deskjet Toolbox by selecting Print a Test Page.
  4. Repeat the cleaning procedure if smeared ink still appears on the printouts.

See also:

HP Deskjet Toolbox